This invention relates to a method and system for providing multiple broadcasts of audio information to spectators at the site of an event such as a sporting contest, horserace, or the like. More particularly, this invention relates to a system and method for providing spectators at an event with broadcasts of audio information regarding the event which they are attending as well as other non-local events.
At many sporting events, such as football games, golf tournaments, car races, etc., and other events at which spectators are present, such as convention centers, financial firms, markets and exchanges, schools, auditoriums, museums, and zoos, etc., it would be very beneficial for spectators to have access to an audio program which would greatly enhance their education and enjoyment of the event. Such an audio program would also be appreciated by spectators during lengthy intervals at the event such as quarter or half time breaks, commercial breaks, intervals between races, etc. However, an audio program regarding only the local event may bore the spectators as such programs may be somewhat repetitious and may include time filling segments of relatively little interest to spectators attending the event. Providing spectators with access to audio broadcasts regarding other sporting events would therefore be welcome entertainment to spectators during such intervals. For example, a spectator attending a track event at the Olympics would appreciate, during the sometimes lengthy intervals between races, having access to audio broadcasts concerning other simultaneously occurring events such as swimming, horseback riding, or gymnastics. Such access to multiple broadcasts would also be beneficial to spectators who are watching an event at one side of a field and wish to learn what is occurring at another event at the other end of the field when loud cheers or other commotion occurs.
Providing spectators with access to multiple audio broadcasts would also be beneficial for events at which the spectators speak different languages. For example, at a football game, one channel could carry a narrative broadcast of the game in English while another channel could carry the broadcast in Spanish. Such a system would be particularly beneficial at events like the Olympics where the spectators speak many languages and broadcasts could be provided in, for example, English, Spanish, Italian, and French.
Current systems for providing spectators at events with audio information generally consist of providing spectators with rented radios or receivers for picking up a locally transmitted signal which carries an audio program regarding the local event. Examples of such systems are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,688,052 and 4,165,587 which generally describe auditoriums equipped with a loop or strip antenna to provide an audio program regarding the event to spectators having a rented radio or receiver. Another example is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,161,250 which describes a radio device for allowing spectators to receive a local broadcast of the sporting event which they are attending. This device is rendered useless after the termination of the event to ensure that the rented receiver is returned. While these devices inform spectators about the local event as it occurs, it would be beneficial and greatly enhance the spectators' education and enjoyment while attending the event if the spectators were provided with access to broadcasts concerning other non-local sporting events.
Although providing spectators with access to multiple broadcasts of local and non-local events would be very beneficial, providing each spectator at an event with radios for picking up signals from radio stations that broadcast such events, and possibly with receivers for picking up televised broadcasts, would be unduly expensive and practically impossible. Even if the spectators were provided with radios for receiving broadcasts transmitted from commercial radio stations, the selection of broadcasts would be limited to only receiving signals from local radio stations. The reception by such radios would also be susceptible to varying conditions such as weather which may significantly affect the clarity and quality of the broadcast. This is of special concern as one of the more advantageous uses of providing radios to spectators is that the radios allow the hearing impaired to enjoy the sport announcer's broadcast which is usually provided over a public address system and is often difficult to hear.
An important aspect of this invention therefore lies in the recognition that providing multiple broadcasts of audio information to spectators regarding local and non-local events would be very beneficial, and the further recognition that providing spectators with conventional radios, and possibly with receivers for picking up televised events, would be unduly expensive and would only provide spectators with a limited selection of audio broadcasts. In brief, the present invention involves the discovery of an inexpensive and efficient system that provides spectators with access to audio broadcasts regarding the local event and access to a wide selection of commercially available broadcasts regarding other non-local sporting events. The system comprises a receiving means for receiving multiple broadcasts of audio information regarding local and non-local events. Such a receiving means may take the form of a local receiver for receiving local broadcasts such as a sport announcer's narration of the event and a non-local receiver that may take the form of a satellite dish or telephone lines for receiving broadcasts regarding other non-local sporting events. A transmission and antenna means are provided to retransmit the local and non-local broadcasts within a predetermined frequency range to a limited area surrounding the local event. Spectators are then provided with radio devices that include narrow-band receiving means for receiving signals within the predetermined frequency range. Preferably, the predetermined frequency range lies outside of the standard FM radio bands and a preferred frequency range lies within the television VHF frequency range of 50 megahertz to 150 megahertz. The band-width of such a predetermined frequency range preferably occupies a very narrow range of 3 to 6 megahertz as the Federal Communications Commission regulates the availability of frequency ranges and only narrow frequency ranges are typically available. The present invention is therefore efficient and economical in that it provides spectators with numerous broadcasts of audio information while only a narrow frequency range needs to be obtained from the Federal Communications Commission or other like regulatory agency. To organize the multiple broadcasts of audio information, the radio device can include a channel selector means for dividing the predetermined frequency range into a plurality of sub-ranges, each sub-range having a channel designation. Once the radio device is set to one of the sub-ranges or channels, it can be tuned to receive one of the broadcasts within the selected channel. Such a system can preferably provide spectators with a selection of 2 to 40 broadcasts regarding the local event as well as non-local sporting events.
In a preferred embodiment, the predetermined frequency range can be divided into four sub-ranges (or frequency bands) each having a band designation. The transmission and antenna means can then transmit the multiple broadcasts on frequencies such that each band is provided with between 5 and 10 available broadcasts. The band divisions can be used to divide the broadcasts into categories such as by sport, geographic region, or language. For multi-lingual applications, each of the four bands can be assigned a language which would provide spectators with the option of listening to between 5 to 10 different audio programs, each of these programs being available on separate bands in one of the 4 languages.